Tuesday, August 23, 2011

At least one reader feels I’m not doing a very good job of exposing the idea that Big Pharma is manipulating or even orchestrating the radical environmental groups that have been attacking antimicrobial silver. I’ll let you decide…

After publication of my latest article, “How Many Scare Tactics and Lies About Antimicrobial Nanosilver Can Friends of the Earth Cram Into a Single Email?” (see article here) several readers wrote to politely chastise me.

One felt that my article was too long and laborious to read, and that I needed to give a short series of “action steps” instead of so many details.

I wrote back explaining that the time to take action was long past…

…that I’d written many, many articles since late 2008 urging colloidal silver users to act against the egregious tactics of the radical environmentalists who have been trying to force the EPA to restrict the public’s access to silver-based products…

…and in those articles I’ve provided a number of “action steps” that could be taken, particularly when public comments on the matter were being requested by the EPA.

Finally, I explained that there’s not much left to do now but sit back and wait as the EPA wrangles over new regulations for products containing antimicrobial silver.

Will the new regulations affect the sale of safe, natural colloidal silver?

We simply don’t know yet, because the EPA and the radical environmentalist groups behind the drive to regulate silver as a “pesticide” have become very tight-lipped about it…

My best guess at the moment is that the EPA will implement new rules and regulations regarding the use of antimicrobial silver in consumer products such as computer keyboards, kitchen cutting boards, toothbrushes, shampoos, soaps, etc. But I’m betting they’ll initially leave colloidal silver out of the fray.

However, after the regulations have been set in stone, I have little doubt the radical environmentalists will start pushing the EPA to include over-the-counter colloidal silver products in their regulations, in accord with the Friends of the Earth White Paper that recommended all colloidal silver products be either banned, or regulated as “drugs.”

Big Pharma’s Influence

Another reader felt I have failed to drive home the contention that the radical environmental groups behind the campaign to regulate silver-based products are being orchestrated by Big Pharma.

Here’s my response to that charge…

Back in early 2009 I wrote an article voicing my strong suspicions that Big Pharma might be funding the radical environmental groups that were working so hard to remove all products containing antimicrobial silver – including colloidal silver – from the marketplace:

"The environmental groups behind the petition to regulate silver particles as ‘pesticides’ get the bulk of their funding, to the tune of millions of dollars a year, from donations from corporate and individual sponsors, as well as from government grants.

My best guess is that Big Pharma is funding these groups through one or more surreptitious pathways to pursue this avenue of silver regulation.

After all, who stands to benefit more than Big Pharma from restricting silver’s availability to the general public?"

I later published an article by intrepid natural health journalist Tony Isaacs, who exposed how Big Pharma appeared to be using its charitable foundations to fund the radical environmentalists.

In the preface to that article, I wrote:

Boy did we hit the nail on the head. It now appears that at least two big drug companies -- Merck and Pfiizer -- have for many years been using charitable foundations to pour tens of thousands of dollars…

…and in some cases even millions of dollars worth of funding into some of the very environmental groups now actively engaged in promoting the petition to have "nano-silver" products regulated as "pesticides."

Tony’s article, which you can read at the link above, went on to expose exactly how the radical anti-silver environmentalists were being funded to the tune of millions of dollars in some cases, by certain charitable foundations associated with Big Pharma.

Finally, in October of 2009 I wrote an article about the lawsuit threat received by natural health journalist Tony Isaacs for exposing the links between the radical environmentalists and Big Pharma’s charitable foundations.

Here’s an excerpt from my lead to that article:

In a recent twist in the battle between environmental groups and colloidal silver users, a spokesman for the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA) has not-so-subtly threatened to sue investigative reporter Tony Isaacs over his articles…

…in which he reported finding funding links between charitable foundations associated with major drug companies such as Merck and Pfizer, and environmental groups directly associated with the petition to force the EPA to regulate silver-based products, including some of the leading brands of colloidal silver.

Since that time, I’ve referenced and linked to these articles on numerous occasions.

Nevertheless, at least one reader feels I’m not doing a good enough job of hammering home the idea that Big Pharma appears to be orchestrating the environmentalist campaign to have antimicrobial silver more stringently regulated by the EPA.

Indeed, one well-known colloidal silver manufacturer has repeatedly written me, politely chastising me for failing to do a good enough job of exposing what he believes to be the manipulation of environmental groups by Big Pharma in a quest to censor and heavily regulate silver-based products.

Here’s his most recent email, which I received after posting my latest article titled “How Many Scare Tactics and Lies About Antimicrobial Nanosilver Can Friends of the Earth Cram Into a Single Email?”:

Hi Steve,

Another superbly written and very passionate piece you’ve written here.

And another well-intended, equally passionate suggestion from me. This time it’s very concise and to the point:

I wish to God your pieces on this subject all focused heavily on the core – CORE – issue behind all this, which is that big pharma is funding and orchestrating all of this and using the environmental groups as their front men…

…and the reason for this drive is solely to keep the “information flow” censored about the far-reaching antimicrobial benefits of silver…

…because that information allows colloidal/ionic silver manufacturers (and consumers who make it themselves) to compete with the multi-billion-dollar antibiotic industry.

It could readily get out of control with more information flow and cost them billions of dollars, with a big B.

Period!

THAT is what this is all about, and that’s what you should be saying from the rooftops in these pieces.

Everything else you’re saying is also of course vital and priceless.

BUT it still seems like “maybe” they’re right and “maybe” you’re just disgruntled for competitive reasons (some people think environmental groups are generally genuine, man)…

…UNTIL you shine the spotlight on that one core bottom-line fact, at which point it all falls right into place!

People then understand that the money that the environmental groups are taking from big pharma has a direct motivation and thus clearly a direct tainting effect on those groups.

They understand that the cries from the environmental groups should now, therefore, suddenly be taken with an enormous grain of salt for that reason alone (without having to digest, research, and make judgments about all the other phenomenal supportive things you point out, or, better yet, in addition to it).

And, they see by virtue of understanding that core issue that, indeed, it is the very benefits that silver provides that is so incredibly threatening to big pharma in the first place…

…hence their elaborately orchestrated campaign to ultimately do one thing and that is censor what was becoming an out-of-control flow of information enlightening the public about the antimicrobial benefits of silver.

Your articles on this subject should have ten times the impact with that core issue spelled out clearly and repeatedly.

I hope that resonates this time.

(Sigh.)

-- Name withheld

Have I Failed to Cover All of the Bases?

Well, there you have it.

I’m not particularly convinced I’ve done a bad job reporting on the craziness being perpetrated by radical environmental groups who’ve been working overtime to push the EPA to more stringently regulate commercial products that incorporate antimicrobial silver into their makeup.

And frankly, I don’t see anyone else out there writing the number of articles I’ve written on this subject.

Furthermore, I believe there’s much more to the story than the glaring likelihood that these environmental groups are being manipulated, orchestrated or otherwise influenced by Big Pharma.

For example, I believe it’s important to cover the numerous lies the environmentalist groups have told…

…the unbelievable levels of sensationalism they’ve engaged in…

…the dirty tricks they’ve pulled…

…the two-faced way they’ve operated…

…the ridiculous scare tactics they’ve engaged in…

…the poorly constructed studies they’ve touted…

…and much more.

Each of these topics are, in my opinion, vital parts of the story that need to be told.

Here are just a few of the articles I’ve written since the radical environmentalist groups first unleashed their campaign against antimicrobial silver in late 2008:

In the future, I’ll continue to do my part and cover this evolving story with the attention to detail I feel it deserves.

And I’ll continue to voice my opinion on the idea that the radical environmentalists are – wittingly or unwittingly – doing the work of Big Pharma in their attempts to restrict access to antimicrobial silver…

…and that integrating antimicrobial silver into commercial products is in my opinion the ONLY sure-fire answer to the growing infectious disease crisis faced by this nation as well as the rest of the world.

Important Note and Disclaimer:The contents of this Ezine have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.Information conveyed herein is from sources deemed to be accurate and reliable, but no guarantee can be made in regards to the accuracy and reliability thereof.The author, Steve Barwick, is a natural health journalist with over 30 years of experience writing professionally about natural health topics.He is not a doctor.Therefore, nothing stated in this Ezine should be construed as prescriptive in nature, nor is any part of this Ezine meant to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.Nothing reported herein is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.The author is simply reporting in journalistic fashion what he has learned during the past 17 years of journalistic research into colloidal silver and its usage.Therefore, the information and data presented should be considered for informational purposes only, and approached with caution.Readers should verify for themselves, and to their own satisfaction, from other knowledgeable sources such as their doctor, the accuracy and reliability of all reports, ideas, conclusions, comments and opinions stated herein.All important health care decisions should be made under the guidance and direction of a legitimate, knowledgeable and experienced health care professional.Readers are solely responsible for their choices.The author and publisher disclaim responsibility or liability for any loss or hardship that may be incurred as a result of the use or application of any information included in this Ezine.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Their hatred of colloidal silver and other silver-based antimicrobial products runs so deep…

… they simply don’t care what sort of hyperbole and exaggeration they have to resort to in order to dupe their followers into pushing the EPA to regulate silver as a “pesticide” and remove it from as many commercial products as possible.

Yes, the radical leaders in the environmental group Friends of the Earth (FOE) are at it again.

In spite of numerous requests from their own members to leave colloidal silver out of the fray in their drive to force the EPA to regulate products containing silver nanoparticles as “pesticides”…

…the FOE continues to push for stronger and stronger federal regulations of silver nanoparticles, with no exemptions for safe, natural colloidal silver – the world’s most powerful natural infection-fighting substance!

You may remember that back in 2008 the Friends of the Earth teamed up with the Center for Technology Assessment and other environmental groups in a bid to force the EPA to more stringently regulate silver nanoparticles being used in commercial products (including colloidal silver) as “pesticides” under the EPA’s antiquated FIFRA regulations.

Four of the top colloidal silver products in the U.S. -- Sovereign Silver, ASAP Silver, Meso Silver and Utopia Silver – as well as many lesser known brands of colloidal silver, were listed in an addendum to the petition to the EPA, as examples of products that needed to be hyper-regulated.

Later, after Friends of the Earth leadership privately assured their members in emails that they had no intention of pushing for the removal of colloidal silver products from the marketplace…

Now the Friends of the Earth are back, and they’re rallying their worldwide membership base to push the EPA into carrying out the first two steps in a regulatory process…

…that will ultimately lead to a tough new regulatory environment for all commercial products that utilize antimicrobial silver.

Scare Tactics Galore

I’ll tell you more about that in just a minute.

But first, let’s take a look at some of the scare tactics used by Friends of the Earth in their recent email, which was designed to dupe their membership into urging the EPA to more harshly regulate commercial products containing antimicrobial silver.

Here are some word-for-word excerpts from their latest email to their members, urging them to help push the EPA into taking stronger steps to regulate nanosilver products.

The email starts ominously, like this (while you read this, imagine the theme music to the movie, Jaws):

“It could be in your toothpaste, in your child’s bottle, or in the cleaning products under your sink.

You may even be touching it right now through the antibacterial coating on your keyboard or on your socks and clothing.

What is this ubiquitous mystery substance?

It’s called nano-silver, and it’s a powerful germ killer.

Nano-silver is the most commonly used of a host of nanoscale -- or extremely tiny, atom-sized -- materials that show up in more than 1,300 consumer products.”

Sounds scary, doesn’t it? Especially that part about “You may even be touching it right now” – which is obviously written to make you feel icky all over.

Problem is, it’s all just a scare tactic -- carefully scripted drama to make you afraid of something that’s never caused you a lick of harm in all of the days of your life, and likely never will.

They call it a “mystery substance,” yet there’s no “mystery” to it at all.

The very water you drink out of the tap (or bottle) contains trace quantities of nano-silver, along with many other minerals.

Indeed, it always has been in your water supply, ever since you were a little baby. It was there long before you were born. And it will always be there, because it’s ubiquitous in the environment.

And the EPA already regulates how much you can safely ingest (EPA Red Document, page 2, 4th paragraph) in drinking water.

You see, silver is everywhere, throughout the earth.

And not chiefly in big chunks, or in long veins in an underground mine like you see in the movies.

It exists mostly as “trace silver” – millions of TONS of tiny microscopic and sub-microscopic silver particles that abound as dissolved silver in the world’s oceans, lakes, rivers and streams, as well silver ions and silver nanoparticles in the ground.

By comparison, man’s contribution to the amount of silver in the environment – through the relatively miniscule 300 or 400 commercial products containing nanosilver – is infinitesimally small.

And even the silver man uses in commercial products came from the environment in the first place!

More Scary Stuff From FOE…

But Friends of the Earth doesn’t stop with mere drama and scary hyperbole. Indeed, they move seamlessly from drama to outright fabrication.

Here’s another excerpt from their recent email missive to their members:

“Currently, nano-silver is not regulated and is seldom labeled -- but that could change soon as a result of Friends of the Earth’s work to push the EPA to take action.”

Not regulated? Really?

Then how did the EPA manage to fine IOGEAR, a California-based consumer electronics company, a whopping $208,000 simply for manufacturing and selling a computer mouse that contained antimicrobial silver nanoparticles as a protective feature?

You see, thanks to the environmentalist drive to regulate into oblivion all products containing antimicrobial silver…

…all U.S. product manufacturers must now register their products with the EPA as a “pesticide” if the product contains antimicrobial silver, and if the product’s antimicrobial silver qualities are mentioned in the labeling and the advertising.

According to press reports, IOGEAR apparently advertised their product’s antimicrobial silver features to their customers, but failed to properly register the product with the EPA as a “pesticide.”

And EPA came down on them like stink on a monkey’s butt.

According to this article, the EPA sang them a song of woe to the tune of $208,000…

…making a screaming example out of them that has scared the bejabbers out of just about every other U.S. manufacturer of products containing silver nanoparticles.

Which, of course, is exactly what the EPA and their radical environmentalist cronies intended.

You see, this isn’t about “protecting the environment.” Not by a long shot.

It’s about collecting those nice, hefty product registration fees, and advancing a political agenda to increase the power and enforcement reach of an out-of-control bureaucracy known as the EPA…

…while destroying the rights of product manufacturers to give their customers the protective antimicrobial features they want most.

Naturally, the radical anti-silver environmentalist trumpeted throughout the media this EPA action against IOGEAR, calling it a “great victory” in the fight to protect the environment from the evil silver nanoparticles.

So if you’ve been wondering what ever happened to all of those great products that were supposed to come out with protective, antimicrobial silver coatings to help keep the superpathogens away, now you know.

Look, everyone knows that labeling silver as a “pesticide,” and registering products that contain antimicrobial silver, is a big joke.

But after the IOGEAR debacle, no one wants to risk the wrath of Khan from the EPA.

So the idea touted by Friends of the Earth that silver nanoparticles are “not regulated” is utter balderdash.

They are very strictly regulated – and to the point that you either dance to the EPA’s tune, or you pay through the nose and lose your ability to sell your product based on its most favorable qualities.

By the way, here’s a short excerpt from IOGEAR’s most recent description of themselves on their web site:

“The company is environmentally-conscious and emphasizes conserving natural resources to employees and customers through its GREEN initiatives.

In addition, IOGEAR has partnered with Trees for the Future to plant one tree for every product purchased on its Web site or by members of its GREEN initiative partner program.”

Do you think they got the message from the EPA and their radical environmentalist cohorts?

Do you think IOGEAR figured out who’s in charge – real fast – after they were blindsided by the EPA to the tune of $208,000 and afterwards and bludgeoned by the radical environmentalists who wanted to make an example of them?

And yet, Friends of the Earth have the gall to bald-faced lie to their own members, saying, “Currently, nanosilver is not regulated…”

…as if the EPA has no power whatsoever to regulate the manufacturers of products containing antimicrobial silver!

My question: Would you buy a used car from one of these guys?

“Seldom Labeled”?

And what about the contention by Friends of the Earth that products containing nano-silver are “seldom labeled.”

Are you kidding me?

When products first began appearing on the market with antimicrobial silver, every one of them touted their protective features on their product labeling, and in their advertising.

After all, that was the point of adding silver to the product!

Then, Friends of the Earth and other environmental radicals freaked out at what they supposedly foresaw as a pending environmental catastrophe…

…with silver particles apparently escaping into the environment and indiscriminately attacking everything in their paths, like the infuriated Indians at Custer’s last stand.

So the Friends of the Earth and their radical cohorts began pushing the EPA to more stringently regulate commercial products containing silver.

As a result, the EPA reacted by passing new regulations stating, basically, that if a company manufactures a product (think in terms of computer keyboards, phone handles, and other contact surfaces)…

…that is labeled or advertised as utilizing silver for antimicrobial purposes, then it must register the product as a “pesticide” with the EPA.

But…if the company does not label the product as having antimicrobial benefits, or advertise it as such, then it can contain silver without registering as a “pesticide.”

Stupid rule? Well, yeah. After all, why would you want to add antimicrobial silver nanoparticles to a product you’re producing if you can’t advertise their benefits to the public?

But soon afterwards radical environmentalists began calling this rule a “loop hole,” even though they were instrumental in bringing it about.

You see, the regulation is very much like the FDA’s 1999 “Final Ruling” against colloidal silver, which states that you can sell colloidal silver as long as you don’t label it or advertise it for its antimicrobial benefits!

In short, this so-called “loophole” against truth-telling is what gives the regulators the ability to step in and shut a company down, fine them, or pull the plug on their silver-based product…

…if the manufacturer so much as dares tell the public the well-known facts regarding the myriad protective benefits of antimicrobial silver without first registering the product and jumping through all of the expensive EPA hoops!

Now the fact of the matter is this:

After the EPA implemented that “don’t ask, don’t tell” regulation, most companies that were manufacturing products containing antimicrobial silver simply…

…pulled the antimicrobial claims from their advertising and labeling, and sold off the remaining stock of their products as quickly as they could, at steep discounts.

That’s exactly what the environmentalists wanted.

The whole thing was designed to bring a screeching halt to the sale of products containing antimicrobial silver.

But now the Friends of the Earth, who were instrumental in getting this regulation implemented…

…turn around and hypocritically claim that commercial products containing antimicrobial silver are “seldom labeled” -- as if it’s some devious plot by the product manufacturers to secretly include silver nanoparticles in commercial products in order to destroy the environment.

The hypocrisy of the radical environmentalists unfortunately knows no bounds.

More Scary Horseshit From Friends of the Earth

The email from Friends of the Earth to their members goes on to tell whopper after whopper. Here’s another great example:

“Nano-silver can be an important ‘last resort’ bacteria killer when used by medical professionals.

But when it’s incorporated into thousands of products used every day, it could worsen a rapidly growing public health threat -- the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, or super germs.”

Again I must ask: Really?

Colloidal silver has been used by millions upon millions of people over the past 30 years as a nutritional supplement. Yet how many colloidal silver users do you know today who are more susceptible to antibiotic-resistant bacteria?

Indeed, colloidal silver users as a whole are far less susceptible to antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

It’s the users of Big Pharma’s prescription antibiotic drugs who are more susceptible to the super-pathogens!

So who does Friends of the Earth think they’re fooling with this nonsense?

As I mentioned in a previous article on this topic, the cause of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is the overuse of Big Pharma’s prescription antibiotic drugs – NOT SILVER!

But let me give the environmentalists a hand. What they’re trying to say, however clumsily, is this:

“If you allow products to be made with antimicrobial silver in order to protect the public from the spread of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, then one day those pathogens might become resistant to silver, too.”

There, I said if for them, since they’re apparently too stupid to say it correctly, themselves.

The problem is, even when correctly stated, it’s still a farce.

It’s very difficult for pathogens to become resistant to silver.

The Truth About Silver-Resistance

According to Lucian Lucia, associate professor of chemistry at North Carolina State University, and chemist George John of City College of New York…

…bacteria simply cannot build up a resistance to silver nanoparticles as they can to antibiotics, because of the multi-faceted way the silver nanoparticle attacks pathogens — destroying the structure of the cells and killing them.

And unlike antibiotic drugs which generally utilize a single course of action against pathogens, silver works in a multi-faceted manner, attacking infectious microorganisms from many different angles.

Therefore, it is very difficult and extremely rare for pathogens to become “resistant” to silver.

“That’s the beauty of silver,” Professor Lucia says. “There’s no way to develop a serious resistance to it.”

Generally speaking, if one facet of silver’s antimicrobial arsenal fails to work on a specific pathogen, another facet will do the job handily.

Infectious disease specialist Dr. David Weber agrees, arguing that the use of silver in commercial products poses very little danger of creating silver-resistant microbes, due to silver’s multiple modes of operation.

As reported in the Los Angeles Times, in August of 2008:

“…Dr. David Weber, an infectious disease and public health expert at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, isn't convinced that silver resistance will prove much of a problem.

Resistance to antibiotics occurs quite readily in bacteria once prolonged exposure to, say, penicillin, occurs. But there's little reason to suppose that resistance to silver would develop so easily, he says.

An antibiotic like penicillin works by hitting a bacterium in a limited fashion, at specific sites. Because the killing is done precisely, the bacterium has a good chance of developing a mutation that would confer resistance.

In contrast, silver kills microbes in a broad, unspecific fashion -- like tossing a bomb at a bacterium. It hits many essential points such as a bacterium's entire respiratory system. This makes it much more difficult for silver-resistance to develop.

And even if tolerance did develop, Weber says, increasing the dose of silver the bacterium is exposed to will solve the problem in most cases.”

In short, microbes simply don’t grow resistant to silver anywhere near as easily as they do to synthetic antibiotic drugs, thanks in large part to silver’s broad spectrum of action.

And even if a microbe does grow resistant to silver, increasing the dosage tends to take care of the problem!

So at best, the Friends of the Earth are being extremely disingenuous with their members when they write them claiming that the use of antimicrobial silver in commercial products could “worsen a rapidly growing public health threat” of antibiotic-resistant germs.

The reality is, silver will help SOLVE the rapidly growing health threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Indeed, if the radical environmentalists would simply get the hell out of the way and allow product manufacturers to incorporate antimicrobial silver into their products…

…silver would save hundreds of thousands and quite possibly millions of lives annually, by stopping the spread of the super-pathogens!

Them’s the facts, folks. You might argue them. But they certainly have more validity than the “sky is falling” rhetoric and hyperbole of the radical environmentalists.

One Final Bit of Lunacy From Friends of the Earth

The Friends of the Earth goes on to say in their recent email to their members:

“Moreover, worryingly little is known about nano-silver’s long-term effects on the environment and human health when used at such a mass scale.

Because nanoparticles are so small, they can be more readily absorbed by tissues and individual cells in our bodies.

Silver is also the second-most toxic metal for aquatic organisms like fish, crabs and water plants, and it could accumulate up the food chain.”

As I stated at the very beginning of this article, silver is already in the environment on a “mass scale.”

Millions of tons of trace silver already exist, in the form of dissolved silver in the oceans, lakes, rivers and streams. And millions of tons more exist in and on the very ground we walk on in the form of silver ions and silver nanoparticles.

So to say “little is known about nano-silver’s long-term effects on the environment and human health” is ludicrous.

The environment has been swimming in nanosilver for eons, with little or no detrimental effects whatsoever.

The oceans, rivers, lakes and streams of the world contain tons upon tons of trace silver in the form of dissolved silver – and they are basically teaming with healthy wildlife from the tiniest aquatic microbes to the largest whales.

What’s more, people have been swigging down colloidal silver for the past century, with nothing but beneficial results, except in those few rare cases where excessive quantities were ingested for extended periods of time, resulting in argyria.

An estimated 10 million colloidal silver users in North America alone can attest to the beneficial qualities of ingested silver.

So the environmentalists’ absurd contention that you’ll be harmed from using a toothpaste that contains silver nanoparticles…

…or you’ll be invaded by “toxic metal” from using a computer keyboard that has silver nanoparticles imbedded into the plastic…

…is just pure fear-mongering designed to advance a political agenda and boost the regulatory scope and reach of a federal agency already well-known for its egregious anti-business and anti-consumer policies.

Can We Win This Battle?

At this point, I honestly don’t think we can win the battle against the radical environmentalists and their cronies in the EPA who are trying to stop product manufacturers from utilizing antimicrobial silver in order to give the public the protection they need to prevent the spread of dangerous pathogens.

In my personal opinion, the outcome of this battle was decided a long time ago, and everyone is just going through the motions of EPA hearings and meetings (aka “dog and pony” shows) until the pre-ordained conclusion has been reached. Though I’d love to be wrong about this, I don’t think I am.

Even as you read this article (Aug 2011) the EPA has just finished taking comments from commercial products manufacturers and environmentalist groups, as they work to craft regulations designed to make it more difficult for product manufacturers to utilize antimicrobial silver in commercial products.

And of course, the radical environmentalists once again loaded the EPA comment system with shrill cries from their members, begging the EPA to institute harsher regulatory constraints against products containing antimicrobial silver.

Naturally, the big losers in this battle will be the American consumers.

But considering the recent European ban on colloidal silver, and the way our own FDA has been working to “harmonize” (with emphasis on “harm”) our nutritional supplement laws with those of Europe…

…my suspicion is that we have not seen the last of the bureaucratic attacks against over-the-counter sale of colloidal silver, by any stretch of the imagination.

Of course, the simple solution to the whole threat against colloidal silver is to own the means of colloidal silver production.

By that, I mean, obtain a high-quality colloidal silver generator, so you can make all of the colloidal silver you could ever need, in the comfort and privacy of your own home, for just pennies per batch.

The bureaucrats may regulate the sale of colloidal silver into oblivion, but if you own the means of colloidal silver production, they can never take it away from you!

You can learn more about making your own colloidal silver – quickly, inexpensively and for just pennies – at The Silver Edge web site.

In the meantime, I’ll continue to report on the environmentalist’s ludicrous campaign against colloidal silver and commercial products that incorporate antimicrobial silver into the makeup…

…and try to make sense of the environmentalist mind-set that would rather see millions of people continue to die from the spread of infectious microorganisms…

…than allow businesses to use safe, natural, antimicrobial silver to help protect the public against the spread of the deadly super-pathogens.

Important Note and Disclaimer:The contents of this Ezine have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.Information conveyed herein is from sources deemed to be accurate and reliable, but no guarantee can be made in regards to the accuracy and reliability thereof.The author, Steve Barwick, is a natural health journalist with over 30 years of experience writing professionally about natural health topics.He is not a doctor.Therefore, nothing stated in this Ezine should be construed as prescriptive in nature, nor is any part of this Ezine meant to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.Nothing reported herein is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.The author is simply reporting in journalistic fashion what he has learned during the past 17 years of journalistic research into colloidal silver and its usage.Therefore, the information and data presented should be considered for informational purposes only, and approached with caution.Readers should verify for themselves, and to their own satisfaction, from other knowledgeable sources such as their doctor, the accuracy and reliability of all reports, ideas, conclusions, comments and opinions stated herein.All important health care decisions should be made under the guidance and direction of a legitimate, knowledgeable and experienced health care professional.Readers are solely responsible for their choices.The author and publisher disclaim responsibility or liability for any loss or hardship that may be incurred as a result of the use or application of any information included in this Ezine.

Colloidal silver could easily be used to dramatically reduce the tragic and indefensible numbers of deaths caused by pathogen-contaminated drinking water.

The use of colloidal silver as a means of ridding drinking water of bacterial, viral and fungal contaminants is not a new idea by any means.

For example, in Mexico, where local water supplies are not always safe in rural areas, a colloidal silver product called Microdyn has been used for decades to help keep residents safe from contaminated drinking water.

According to The Silver Institute, a group that reports on the many uses of silver worldwide:

“Since 1955, with the approval of the Ministry of Health of Mexico, Microdyn, a silver colloid, with a particle size of about 2 manometers, has been used to provide healthful water for its citizens.

‘A few drops of Microdyn available in small bottles provides sufficient silver to disinfect clear drinking water in about 10 minutes,’ states Luis Arizcorreta Buchholz, president of Roland de Mexico, S.A, de C.V, Mexico D.E, Mexico.

‘It’s a convenient disinfectant for individual use in areas wherever tap water is suspect.

Microdyn has also found wide popularity in Mexico as a rinse to disinfect fruit and vegetables. It is also active against spores and parasites.’

Microdyn is also made available in a soluble carrier which is painted on the interior of cisterns for the long-term disinfection of drinking water.

Its use is credited with a dramatic improvement in the health of the residents of the town of Cruz Azul, Lagunas, Oaxaca, Mexico, who for years had suffered rampant gastroenteritis.

The introduction of a Microdyn coating to the town's water supply cisterns in 1977 made the difference. Other local water supply systems treated with Microdyn achieved similar results.

A study by Microbiological Research & Development Inc. of Tucson, Arizona, proved the relative power of Microdyn against that of chlorine.

At the 0.025 milligram per liter (mg/liter) level of Microdyn silver (the United States Environmental Protection Agency suggested limit for silver in drinking water is 0. 100 mg/liter]…

…water charged with 2,700 units per liter of the fecal conform Echerichia coli (E.Coli) bacterium was completely sterilized in less than three hours, whereas the chlorine to sterilize the same charge of bacterium over the same period of time required 40 times greater concentration.

In another test, water charged with 100 times that amount of fecal coliform required 8 times the normal concentration of Microdyn for complete sterilization, whereas 10 times the concentration of chlorine was required.

In every case, the disinfectant power of Microdyn was greater than that of chlorine. Silver's antibacterial power is so strong that Microdyn contains only 3,575 parts per billion of silver per liter, or less than 2 milligrams silver per liter-sized bottle.”

What’s more, back in 2001 a water purification company called NVID International of Clearwater, FL tested colloidal silver in drinking water in the Mexican city of Celaya, and found that it was astonishingly effective in reducing coliform bacterial counts in the water.

Again, according to The Silver Institute:

“NVID International, Inc. of Clearwater, Florida, announced the successful completion of testing of a municipal drinking water system utilizing ionic silver, in the city of Celaya, Mexico.

The test was designed to test a three-block section of the distribution-piping grid for this city of 350,000 residents.

The test commenced on March 8 under the auspices of the City of Celaya, and the state branches of Commission National de Aug (CNA) and Salute de Ambiental (Mexican EPA).

The Company's Ionic Disinfection System was installed on one of the 65 wells serving the city's residents and the system injected 10 parts per billion of ionic silver into the distribution grid.

Within 24 hours of installing the system, the fecal conform count was brought to zero and it remained at zero for the next eighteen days.

The system was then taken off-line and the fecal conforms returned within two days.

The system was reconnected to the distribution grid and again obtained zero fecal coliform within 24 hours and kept the count at zero for the next 45 consecutive days.

NVID's President, David Larson stated:

‘This test was very significant due to the low levels of ionic silver used in the disinfection.

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommended the allowable levels of silver present in drinking water be set at 100 ppb, and most of the Company's systems are designed to inject ionic silver well below the limit, at a rate of 60 ppb.

Proving efficacy at only 10 ppb is significant in that cost comparisons with traditional disinfectants such as Chlorine become more favorable and the initial capital outlay for end users is greatly reduced.’”

Certainly, considering the above examples, colloidal silver could be used similarly in developing nations to save thousands upon thousands of lives annually.

Ceramic Water Filters Using Colloidal Silver

Indeed, for years the group Potters for Peace have been showing villagers in remote areas of developing countries how to make ceramic water filters infused with colloidal silver to provide their villages with fresh, clean, and germ-free water.

And starting in 2006, U.S. troops have been helping Iraqi villagers use that same crude but highly effective technology to protect themselves from bacterially contaminated water. Here’s the story, from an official U.S. Army publication, The Ivy Leaf…

Pouring troubles away

Water filter provides factions reason to unite, combat water problems in region

Story and photo by

Spc. Edgar Reyes

2nd BCT PAO, 4th Inf. Div.

As the scorching Iraqi sun blazed down on a little boy in a village, he cupped his hands together to drink water from a canal running through the middle of his town, unaware that 11,000 children like him die from water-borne diseases every day around the world who drink from similar canals.

As a way to resolve the local water problem and prevent tragedies such as this, leaders from 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, requested the help of a college professor to teach local Iraqi potters how to make clay/sawdust ceramic filter pots capable of decimating 99.88% of water-borne disease agents.

Perhaps equally important in the endeavor is the ability to provide jobs for the local populace and present a reason for factions to unite for a common cause.

To accomplish this, Richard Wukich, a college ceramics professor who teaches at Slippery Rock University in Pittsburgh, volunteered to instruct two Iraqi potters how to make the ceramic filters during his free time between semesters. He traveled to Iraq and spent two weeks training his new charges.

Wukich began his class by teaching the apprentices how to make clay pots with a mixture of saw dust, which is uncommon in Iraqi culture.

The saw dust disappears during the clay baking process, creating several small holes that act as a filtering system inside the pot.

After crafting several pots, Wukich taught the trainees how to coat the pots with colloidal silver, an incredibly fine particle that kills bacteria and organisms and does not allow bacteria to grow into a culture inside the pot.

The pots are either painted with a brush or dipped into a container containing a colloidal silver and water mixture.

After the colloidal silver is completely absorbed into the pot, it is placed on the mouth of a 5-gallon receptacle container. The filter is then covered with a lid or a piece of fine cloth. Users pour water into the fine cloth to filter out extremely turbid water.

As the water enters the clay pot, the filters inside the clay leave small dirt particles behind and the colloidal silver destroys any bacteria in the water.

The clear and clean water then drips into the 5-gallon receptacle at a rate of 1-1.5 quarts-an-hour. “This project was originally initiated by Capt. Richard Nardo,” said Wukich.

“He is an environmental engineer who was activated by his Reserve unit to deploy to Iraq. He saw the need for a water filtration system and began researching on the internet until he found the clay filter technology “Potters for Peace” had learned to use from a doctor in Guatemala.”

Nardo contacted “Potters for Peace” and requested Wukich to help teach Iraqis how to build the filters as well as devise a business plan so the Iraqi people could begin mass manufacturing of the product and create jobs in the area.

Initial attempts to begin the project stalled in January 2004 before Wukich provided an article published in a renowned newspaper in the U.S., which contained statements from a commander in Iraq who had the same concerns regarding the conditions of the water supply.

In the article, Lt. Col. Patrick Donahoe, commander, 1-67 AR, stated the problems he was facing in Iraq were similar to the problems he faced when he deployed to Bosnia as a young officer, said Wukich.

People of different ethnicities and religions attempted to gain power in the country and, in doing so, they ripped the country apart and divided the people – eerily resembling the current situation in Iraq with Sunni and Shiite factions clashing.

In the article, he also mentioned the need to provide business opportunities benefiting both factions and reintegrating local politics with leadership.

Knowing the business possibilities of the ceramic filters, Wukich said he sent an email to Donahoe describing the water filter and the possible economic impact it could have in Donahoe’s area of operations.

After several conversations with Donahoe, Wukich was invited to Forward Operating Base Iskandariyah to begin the project.

“If it wasn’t for Lt. Col. Donahoe, this project would not be happening right now,” said Wukich. “I had several roadblocks with my previous attempts, but with his assistance, I’ve finally been able to start the project.”

“This project is going to do two things,” said Maj. James Ortoli, civil affairs team leader, 412th Civil Affairs Battalion.

“It’s going to put Iraqis to work and give them clean water. It is the most economically efficient way for Iraq to start making its people responsible for their own water.”

The big plan for the ceramic filters is to teach the apprentices how to make the filters so they can start selling them at affordable prices to the general public.

Once the idea of having a filter catches on with the Iraqi people, the apprentices could then hire workers to increase production in their area thereby creating jobs and improving their economy.

Having both sides work together to provide the country with clean water and boost the economy could be exactly what this country needs at this moment in time, said Ortoli.

-- End news article --

Colloidal Silver Could Save Millions of Lives

Yes, colloidal silver is saving lives around the world. And it could be used to save millions more lives, if the technology were introduced into the poorer villages of more and more developing nations.

Government health authorities know this is true, because for years they’ve even used colloidal silver to purify water aboard the Space Shuttle.

What’s more, in Europe, almost all ocean-going ships use colloidal silver to keep their onboard drinking water pure and safe from bacterial contamination.

According to Anders Sultan, one of Sweden’s top advocates of the use of silver as a disinfectant agent:

“…for many years there have been highly concentrated silver nitrate based products on the European market. These are for disinfecting the water kept in the fresh water tank in marine vessels.

Ever since the 1950s large ships have been equipped with silver-based water purification systems.

In fact, there are tens of thousands of large ships around the world that utilize this technology.

One of the pioneers and largest manufacturers of this technology is the Swedish company Jowa. You can see an excerpt from their product description at this web site link.

Jowa also have a water purification system that sterilizes the water through the use of silver ions, much like the ones your little colloidal silver generators produce.

This product, called Jowa AG-S, has made Sweden world-famous in the shipping industry. This sterilization method provides long-term protection and is a suitable method for long-term storage of drinking water.

Since its introduction in 1970, this unit has been installed in thousands of ships.

Incidentally, sterilizing water with the help of silver is an old and well-proven method that goes all the way back to antiquity. It is completely harmless to humans and animals and the silver ions do not change the taste or smell of the water.”

So silver’s use as a water disinfectant is well-known – so well-known, in fact, there’s truly no reasonable excuse for not utilizing this technology in more areas of the world.

Groups like Potters for Peace are doing so, by sending people into remote areas to teach villagers how to make and use the colloidal silver-impregnated ceramic water filters in order to protect themselves from contaminated drinking water.

And as you’ve read in the article excerpt above, this same technology is being utilized in areas like Iraq, by people basically copying the Potters for Peace method.

But more needs to be done.

According to The Silver Institute, the use of silver as a disinfectant agent is indeed spreading, but mostly in commercial products used in domestic households:

“Silver is employed as a bactericide and algaecide in an ever increasing number of water purification systems in hospitals, remote communities and, more recently, domestic households.

Silver ions have been used to purify drinking water and swimming pool water for generations…

…An increasing trend is the millions of on-the-counter and under-the-counter water purifiers that are sold each year in the United States to rid drinking water of bacteria, chlorine, trihalomethanes, lead, particulates, and odor.

Here silver is used to prevent the buildup of bacteria and algae in the filters. Of the billions of dollars spent yearly in the U.S. for drinking water purification systems, over half make advantageous use of the bactericidal properties of silver.

New research has shown that the catalytic action of silver, in concert with oxygen, provides a powerful sanitizer, virtually eliminating the need for the use of corrosive chlorine.”

But expensive commercial products are not what villagers in remote areas of developing nations are in need of.

They need simple colloidal silver-making technology, and education in how to use that technology for their maximum protection and benefit.

That’s one reason why, over the years, The Silver Edge has given away many simple, battery operated colloidal silver generators to missionaries working in remote villages in developing countries.

These have been used to make colloidal silver to help purify drinking water, and also to use as an infection-fighting agent whenever antibiotic drugs are in short supply.

Using the above method, just about anyone can make all of the colloidal silver needed to line ceramic water filters with safe, natural bacteria-killing silver, or to simply add some colloidal silver to suspected drinking water whenever needed.

The technology for making colloidal silver is simple. It is effective. And it truly works.

Hopefully, more and more villages in developing nations will be given access to this remarkable yet extremely simple technology of reducing infections from contaminated drinking water.

Important Note and Disclaimer:The contents of this Ezine have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.Information conveyed herein is from sources deemed to be accurate and reliable, but no guarantee can be made in regards to the accuracy and reliability thereof.The author, Steve Barwick, is a natural health journalist with over 30 years of experience writing professionally about natural health topics.He is not a doctor.Therefore, nothing stated in this Ezine should be construed as prescriptive in nature, nor is any part of this Ezine meant to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.Nothing reported herein is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.The author is simply reporting in journalistic fashion what he has learned during the past 17 years of journalistic research into colloidal silver and its usage.Therefore, the information and data presented should be considered for informational purposes only, and approached with caution.Readers should verify for themselves, and to their own satisfaction, from other knowledgeable sources such as their doctor, the accuracy and reliability of all reports, ideas, conclusions, comments and opinions stated herein.All important health care decisions should be made under the guidance and direction of a legitimate, knowledgeable and experienced health care professional.Readers are solely responsible for their choices.The author and publisher disclaim responsibility or liability for any loss or hardship that may be incurred as a result of the use or application of any information included in this Ezine.

Welcome!

I'm Steve Barwick, author of the Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual and guest star of the 60-Minute Colloidal Silver Secrets Video. I created this blog to help you learn more about the amazing healing and infection-fighting qualities of colloidal silver -- the world's most powerful natural antibiotic! Get FREE tips on healing with colloidal silver, and a FREE Colloidal Silver Safe Dosage Report at the link directly below...

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Meet Steve Barwick

Steve Barwick is a noted natural health journalist with hundreds of published articles to his credit over the past 30 years.
He is also the author, co-author or editor of five books on natural health and survivalist topics, and is currently working on five additional books.
For the past 13 years he has been an enthusiastic advocate of the responsible use of colloidal silver. He is also a strong proponent of taking personal responsibility for one's own health and well-being, particularly through proper nutrition and natural health.
Barwick is also known as the resident colloidal silver advocate at www.TheSilverEdge.com.
And he is the featured guest star of the newly released Colloidal Silver Secrets video, now available inexpensively in DVD format at www.ColloidalSilverSecretsVideo.com.
His 547-page book, The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual, is the world's bestselling book on colloidal silver and its usage. Learn more at www.UltimateColloidalSilverManual.com.
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Disclaimer

Important: The information on this blog has not been reviewed or approved of by the FDA. Nor is it intended to provide medical advice, or be "prescriptive" in any way. It is merely a journalistic account of what we have learned about colloidal silver and its usage from the existing literaure, from personal experience, and from interviews with over 2,000 experienced colloidal silver users over the course of the past 12 years. The information on this blog is not meant to be the "final word" on colloidal silver usage by any stretch of the imagination. The information is from sources deemed to be accurate and reliable, but no guarantees of accuracy or reliability are hereby expressed or implied. Therefore, readers are urged to perform their own due diligence. When dealing with medical conditions, always consult with your licensed and trusted medical professional.